New school for children with motor disabilities opening in San Francisco

Chef Elisabeth Prueitt, co-owner with her husband, Chad Robertson, of Tartine Bakery and Bar Tartine, recently announced that she is co-founding the Conductive Learning Center of San Francisco (CLCSF), a non-profit school for children with motor disabilities. The new school is scheduled to open this fall.

Prueitt and Robertson’s daughter, Archer, who has motor delays due to cerebral palsy, has been helped significantly by her work with Hungarian teacher Krisztina Abonyi-Bernstein (co-founder of the CLC), as well as short stays at the Conductive Learning Center in Michigan. Archer’s progress with the program inspired Prueitt to bring this innovative approach within reach of Bay Area families.

“It was evident as soon as we started working with Krisztina that this was an approach that combined common sense with what science now understands about brain plasticity. After attending the school in Michigan, there were two things that stood out: this was a unique educational program that made a huge impact on Archer, and that in a classroom setting children are inspired to help each other and show what they have learned,” says Prueitt in a press release announcing the new school.  “We knew we either had to move to Michigan or open a school here.”

Created to help children with motor challenges such as cerebral palsy and spina bifida, conductive education is based on the work of Hungarian doctor András Pető.  The CLC aims to integrate medical knowledge with educational methods that enable children to gain independence, self-esteem and problem solving skills for daily activities. Although the approach is widespread in its native Hungary and parts of Western Europe, few conductive learning centers exist in the U.S. When it opens this fall, the CLCSF will be the first such educational system of its kind in the Bay Area.

You can watch a clip of a segment that ran on 60 Minutes about the Pető Institute and its methods and successes here: 60 Minutes on Facebook.



Because of the significant costs associated with opening the new Conductive Learning Center of San Francisco, Prueitt has organized a fund-raising campaign. The first benefit dinner will be held at Bar Tartine on June 27th and will feature a Hungarian menu created by executive chef Nick Balla.  It will be a family style meal eaten against a backdrop of live music, paired with wines by Alex Fox, and ending with desserts that Prueitt herself is creating.

The benefit will also feature a silent auction offering rare items such as a bread baking apprenticeship with Robertson, a custom herb garden from Flora Grubb Gardens, Tartine tote bags hand painted by local artists, as well as various gift certificates to local restaurants and cultural institutions.

DETAILS:
Date: Monday, June 27th, 2011
Time: Cocktails served at 6:30 PM; dinner and auction to follow
Location:
  Bar Tartine
  561 Valencia St. (at 17th Street)
  San Francisco, CA 94110
  (Valet parking available)
  415.487.1600
Cost: $250 per person (includes dinner, wine, tax, and gratuity; fully tax deductible)
Tickets: available at Eventbrite (http://clcsfbenefit.eventbrite.com/)

For more information on Conductive Learning Center of San Francisco, including more details about the upcoming benefit dinner, visit their website at www.conductivelearning.org.

Have you pulled up a chair with The Coffee Klatch?

If you're a parent or caregiver of a child or adult with special needs, you might like to know about the resources available through a unique online community called The Coffee Klatch.

The Coffee Klatch is an interactive forum on Blog Talk Radio and Twitter bringing together expert guests from around the world and those with needs, concerns and interests in the special needs community.

Tomorrow, on Thursday, June 2, the chat on twitter is about parental stress, loss of work, and the financial and marital strains of dealing with a child/teen with mental illness with Marianne Russo of The Coffe Klatch. Time is 9:00 a.m. Go to tweetchat.com/room/tck to participate.

That's just one example of the kind of programming put together by the crew at The Coffee Klatch. There are other discussions scheduled as well - check The Coffee Klatch calendar for details and a direct link to TweetChat.

And then click over to Blog Talk Radio where The Coffee Klatch provides a "virtual cup of coffee for parents of special needs children." You'll find interviews with award-winning authors, expert psychiatrists, psychologists, physicians, advocates and internationally renowned children's foundations that provide valuable information to help you raise your special needs child.

The Coffee Klatch was begun to help remedy the isolation so many parents of special needs children experience and to provide much needed information and support. As they love to say, "You are your child's best advocate - if not you then who - become an informed educated parent."

Checking in for Autism Awareness Month

April has been Autism Awareness Month - and still is right to the end. To mark the occasion, a number of organizations have stepped up their efforts to grow awareness of the condition and push for more research and services to improve the lives of those with autism.

One such organization is the California Autism Foundation, which launched a new website in April to mark the occasion. The mission of the California Autism Foundation is to provide people with autism and other developmental disabilities the best possible opportunities for lifetime support, training and assistance in helping them reach their highest potential for independence, productivity and fulfillment. Their new website includes more information, resources and links - find it at www.calautism.org.

They also still have a couple more events scheduled in April, if you're looking for an opportunity to connect.

Montclair Bistro Celebrity Bartender Event
Thursday, April 28th
6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
6118 Medau Place, Oakland, CA 94611

CAF Parents and Friends Meeting & Parent Workshops
Friday, April 30th
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
California Autism Foundation, 4075 Lakeside Drive, Richmond, CA 94806
For more details, see the calendar of events page on the calautism.org website.

Additional autism groups in California:
The Autspot is a social network for families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).  Their website also provides resources such as available programs for children and adults with ASD, as well as a library of information to better understand ASD.

The Care Parent Network is a family support and advocacy group made up of parents with special needs children based in Contra Costa County. Their website also contains a lot of helpful information and links to resources. Check their newsletter for information on opportunities to connect.

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Even if you or a member of your family is not affected by autism, it's becoming more and more likely that we all know someone who is. Hopefully, efforts to raise awareness will soon lead to more and better information on the causes of autism, better diagnoses, and ever more helpful treatments, care and services.

Think about those with autism in April. Contribute to the improvement of the lives of those with developmental disabilities when you can.

Federal Law Mandates Residential Choice for the Developmentally Disabled

For people with developmental disabilities and their families, it is important to know that choice in care and services exists - and that it is the right of the developmentally disabled and their family members to exercise that choice.

There are agencies and organizations that can help find services and offer support in choosing the most appropriate care for the disabled individual.

VOR, an organization that speaks out for people with mental disabilities and works to unite advocates and educate and assist families, organizations, public officials, and individuals concerned with the quality of life and choice for persons with mental disabilities, is one such organization. VOR includes good information on their website to help the disabled and their parents and advocates understand and access the full array of residential options, including community and facility-based care.

Their information on provisions in federal law for the right of the disabled person and their families to choose residential care is especially interesting and helpful. (See Choice Defined in Law and Use in the Toolkit for Families section of their website.)

Here is just one example cited:

The Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. §2001(c)(3)
(c) POLICY. -It is the policy of the United States that all programs, projects, and activities receiving assistance under this title shall be carried out in a manner consistent with the principles that-
* * *
(3) individuals with developmental disabilities and their families are the primary decision makers regarding the services and supports such individuals and their families receive, including regarding choosing where the individuals live from available options, and play decision-making roles in policies and programs that affect the lives of such individuals and their families.

Again, from the VOR web site:

In the landmark Olmstead v. L.C. ruling, the Supreme Court recognized the need for a range of services for people with mental retardation or other disabilities. This decision  responds to the varied and unique needs of the entire disability community: “We emphasize that nothing in the ADA or its implementing regulations condones termination of institutional settings for persons unable to handle or benefit from community settings...Nor is there any federal requirement that community-based treatment be imposed on patients who do not desire it.”  119 S. Ct. 2176, 2187 (1999).

You can find more information on the Olmstead case on the VOR web site at The Olmstead Decision and the Disability Community.

More information on federal provisions of choice for the disabled can be found at Residential Choice for People with Disabilities.

New social media website for families with special needs children

The latest venture of Vast Horizons, Inc., a San Francisco Bay Area company that operates assisted living homes, is a social network dedicated to families and caregivers of special needs children. Called VHI Connect it aims to connect individuals with special needs, their families, and their caregivers with information, services, supplies, and each other.

The site has not launched yet, but according to VHI is coming soon. Billed as a private network that will include an ecommerce facility and allow members to post classified ads as well as share information, expect the new VHI Connect network to differ significantly from other established platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Certainly there is real value in an online forum and gathering place dedicated to a community with a shared interest or need, which is why the Ning networks have been popular.

If you do use Twitter and would like to connect with others, you can also join The Coffee Klatch (@TheCoffeeKlatch) for a daily interactive forum on a variety of topics relating to both physical and emotional disabilities. Visit The Coffee Klatch website for discussion times and more information.
For more information about the new VHI Connect network, visit the VHI Connect website at www.vhiconnect.org.